


Cough Drops

by Leif Writes (FrankensteinsMomster)



Category: Prodigal Son (TV 2019)
Genre: Brightwell (pre-relationship), F/M, Fluff, Gil is playing matchmaker, Malcolm is a good friend, Sick Character, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-25
Updated: 2020-11-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:35:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27716194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FrankensteinsMomster/pseuds/Leif%20Writes
Summary: Gil turned to Dani, waiting for her to wipe her nose on a pathetic looking napkin she pulled from her pocket. "Go home."She opened her mouth to protest but her voice came out in a hoarse whisper too quiet for any of them to hear."That's an order, not a request. Malcolm, you drive her. You owe her for the last twenty times she's had to babysit your ass. Edrisa can fill you in when you get back."
Relationships: Gil Arroyo & Malcolm Bright, Malcolm Bright & JT Tarmel, Malcolm Bright/Dani Powell
Comments: 9
Kudos: 63





	Cough Drops

"How's Tally doing, she's due any day now, right?" Malcolm tried to sound casual when he asked. Not like he had spent the last few months learning all he could about pregnancy, giving birth, and infant care. 

Small children had always been vaguely terrifying to him but he wanted to be a good, supportive friend. The best way he knew to do that was to read every book, watch every video, and even get himself infant CPR certified. Some might say he’d gone a bit overboard, it wasn’t like JT would be bringing the kid around to the precinct any time soon but still, he liked to be prepared.

"Well, her official due date was yesterday but," JT shrugged, "no baby yet. She's scheduled to be induced Thursday if she doesn't go into labor by then." 

Malcolm racked his brain to try to come up with an adequate response but was saved by the arrival of both Dani and Gill joining them in the morgue. 

"Where's Edrissa?" Gil asked a moment before she entered the room. 

"Sorry! I hope you guys weren't waiting too long! We've been so busy today, I just ran off to eat lunch real quick. Have you guys tried the new falafel place down the street-"

"Edrissa," Gil held up a hand to stop her before gesturing to the body in front of them. 

"I'm just saying it's worth the hype. But right, the body!" She smiled and continued to speak. 

Dani's face caught his eye. She looked tired in a way he hadn’t seen on her before. Her cheeks were flushed and her coat was pulled tight around her slouched frame. He should be listening to Edrisa, she was explaining what the strange markings they'd discovered meant. He stole another glance at Dani who chose that moment to sneeze loudly, startling him, and then sneezing another four times. 

"I'm sorry Edrisa," Gil cut in, "I have to stop you there for a minute." 

Edrisa nodded. 

Gil turned to Dani, waiting for her to wipe her nose on a pathetic looking napkin she pulled from her pocket. "Go home." 

She opened her mouth to protest but her voice came out in a hoarse whisper too quiet for any of them to hear.

"That's an order, not a request. Malcolm, you drive her. You owe her for the last twenty times she's had to babysit your ass. Edrisa can fill you in when you get back." 

Malcolm nodded and started to turn to follow the now sulking Dani when Gil grabbed his arm. 

"Get her comfortable and make sure she takes her medicine. She's almost as stubborn as you are. Hates to admit that she's sick." 

He nodded again in agreement. A few quick steps and he caught up with her. 

"I just need some things from my desk." Her voice was nasally and rough. She dug a hand into her pocket and pulled out a cough drop, unwrapping the crinkly wrapper and popping it into her mouth. 

"Anything I can help with?" He asked. 

She shook her head, sneezing again. He handed her a handkerchief from his pocket. 

"I didn't know people actually kept these." She cracked a smile, laughing at his monogrammed initials. 

"My mother gives them to me. Insists that they're a necessary part of my wardrobe." He smiled. They were more useful than he cared to admit. He used them at crime scenes if he'd forgotten his gloves and on multiple occasions used them to clean up the scrapes and bumps he collected at a worrying rate. 

"Alright, 'm ready." 

…

Except for the occasional sneeze and coughing fit, the drive to Dani's apartment was made in silence. She begrudgingly gave him her address and rested her head against the cool glass window, closing her eyes.

He didn't mind the quiet. Not with Dani at least. He didn't feel the need to fill in the silence with awkward small talk like he did with most people. But Dani wasn’t most people. He glanced at her at a red light, watching her frame rise and fall with deep, heavy breaths. 

_It’s just a cold. She’ll be better in no time._

____

____

“Lights green,” she whispered. He jumped, his cheeks reddening at being caught. He kept his eyes on the road for the remainder of the drive. 

…

He cautiously took a step into the apartment after Dani. It was small, every inch covered in plants, pictures, and art that looked like it had been made by multiple small children. He smiled at a picture of what looked like a triangle holding hands with two smaller, more wiggly triangles with the words, “We love you Tia Dani,” written in purple crayon. 

“I didn’t know you were a collector,” he smiled, gesturing towards the picture. 

“Only the finest art for my walls. You know how it is.” She started filling an old tea kettle and groaned. 

“Hey,” he rushed forward, taking the kettle from her hands and trying not to think about the brush of her fingers against his, “I’ll take care of this, you go take a nice steamy shower and put some pj’s on.”

She eyed him and opened her mouth to argue. 

“Gil’s orders. Also something about taking your medicine?”

She groaned again making a face before opening the pantry and grabbing a bottle and a measuring spoon. She poured something dark and thick out before swallowing it down quickly. Malcolm’s nose crinkled at the smell. 

“See, not that bad.” He lied. She offered the bottle to him and he grimaced. She chuckled before returning the bottle to the pantry. Malcolm watched as she left the room to what he guessed was her bedroom. 

“Try not to burn the place down while I’m in the shower, Bright.” 

“I’ll try my best,” he replied. 

“That’s not very comforting,” she called back. 

He stared back at the gas stove and chewed on his lip. He really would try his best. 

…

When she got out of the shower he was gone. A still steaming mug of tea sat on the counter and a note that he’d be back as soon as possible. She looked at the hook on the wall, that asshole stole my keys. 

She shook her head and took the mug back with her to bed. He was unconventional to say in the least but she trusted him. Gil and JT had a copy of her apartment’s key just in case of emergencies and it only made sense for Malcolm to have one too. She tried to ignore the nagging feeling in the back of her mind about how different it felt for Malcolm to have them. That was a thought for later. For now, she drank her tea and set it on the bedside table before wrapping an oversized quilt around her, closing her eyes, and falling into a restless but much needed sleep.

…

Dani had already gotten out of the shower and fallen asleep by the time he came back, which was probably for the best. It took four trips from the car to her apartment to get everything he had picked up back to her apartment. 

He put the ungodly large container of soup in her above the stove microwave for later and placed crackers on a tray, setting them to the side. 

The humidifiers and air purifiers were a little more difficult. Three humidifiers and two air purifiers should be enough. He knew she would argue his purchases later but he’d cross that bridge when he got to it. He didn’t like making people uncomfortable with his money and generally tried to avoid buying extravagant gifts. She had done so much for him since the beginning of their friendship, it was the least he could do.

_The faster she gets better, the faster she gets back to work. ___

____

____

He attempted to convince himself that was his reasoning but even he didn’t believe it. He cared about Dani in a way he wasn’t quite ready to think about. He just knew he wanted to take care of her and didn’t want her to unnecessarily suffer and if that meant her getting mad at him for buying a few things then he could deal with that.

He’d gotten a few other things too, after a quick call to his usual physician. Vapor rub, a stronger and (what he was hoping) better-tasting cough syrup, a heating pad, something for the fever and body aches, tissues with aloe, chapstick, marshmallows, ice pops, and some more cough drops. He had contemplated calling his physician over to check her out but had decided that might have been a step too far. 

He had just finished setting up the second humidifier when he heard a smattering of painful sounding coughs from the bedroom followed by a groan. He knocked on the door. 

“Hey, it’s me. Malcolm. Can I come in?”

“Sure.” 

He smiled at her softly as he opened the door, taking in the scene. A worn quilt was pulled up and around her so only her face showed. Her nose was rubbed raw and her eyes were slightly watery. A pile of used tissues was piled on her bedside table next to the now empty mug of tea. She looked slightly more rested but still thoroughly miserable. 

“I, uh, got some things for you. To help. Are you hungry?” 

“Not really but I should probably eat something. I have some cans of soup in the pantry.” She started to shift in bed like she was going to stand up. 

“You just stay there and I’ll take care of everything!” He smiled before running back to the kitchen. He put an apron on, one he’d brought from home, and arranged a bowl of soup, crackers, a bottle of water, tea, and a cup of orange juice on a tray, carefully carrying it to the bedroom. 

“Did you buy all of this?” 

“Save your strength, you can argue all you want when you’re feeling better. Try the soup.” 

She made a face at him, rolling her eyes before taking a sip of the soup.

“This is actually really good.” She took another sip. 

“It’s homemade. Not by me,” he clarified when she raised a brow at him. “My mother’s chef, he’s been with the family for years. I asked him to make a pot. It always makes me feel better.” He smiled, watching her dip a cracker and take a bite. 

He left her to eat and brought in the already constructed humidifier and air purifier. Dani grimaced at him. 

“Bright, you really didn’t need to.” 

“Please, just let me do this. Like I said, save your strength and argue with me later." He forced a smile and hoped.

She sighed, shaking her head at him. “Fine, but I’m only allowing it because I still feel bad about punching you that one time.” 

He laughed, plugging in the humidifier. “If that’s what it takes, I’ll take it.” 

He could feel her eyes on him while he set the room up, filling the water tanks of the humidifier and rearranging the cords on the power strip to something he hoped was less of a fire trap. When he was finished he stood, awkwardly swaying his arms. Now that he was done with his work he wasn’t sure if he was welcome to stay any longer. 

“Done with your soup?”

She nodded and he took the tray away, leaving the tea and orange juice and a few crackers on her bedside table. 

“Is there anything else I can do for you?” He fiddled with the edges of his suit jacket, realizing he was still wearing the apron he had put on earlier. He untied it quickly, folding it and stuffing it under his arm. He opened his mouth to say something at the exact moment Dani did. 

“You go first”

“You go first”

He closed his mouth and they stared at each other for a moment before Dani broke out into another coughing fit. 

“I’m okay,” she reassured him. She took a sip of the tea before starting again. “I just wanted to say thank you. You didn’t have to do all of this. You shouldn’t have. Really. I’m grateful though. I’m not used to someone taking care of me like this. So. Thanks.”

There were words on the tip of his tongue he wasn’t prepared to say. Yet. “You’ve always shown kindness to me that I- I appreciate. You’re constantly putting up with my eccentricities and family and everything. I just wanted to do what I could to help. To thank you.”

“It’s what friends do,” she answered. 

“Right, friends.” he smiled at her knowing perfectly well that she knew what he meant. 

“You know, Bright, under that pile of clothes there’s a chair. Maybe you could sit for a while and stay with me? At least until I fall asleep.” she said it nonchalantly, not looking at him. 

“I think I could do that.”

It wasn’t long before her breathing evened out, sounding not as laborious as it had earlier. He stayed for a while longer wondering when he would be ready to say the words he so desperately wanted to say to her and hoping that when he was ready it wouldn’t be too late.

…

He walked into the precinct. He had been gone more than a few hours longer than he had originally hoped and he made a beeline to Gil’s office to apologize. He knocked on the door, the voice on the other side telling him to come in. 

“Your back.”

“I’m so sorry Gil, I know I shouldn’t have disappeared in the middle of a case but I had to run to the store and the pharmacy and my place to grab some things and-”

“Kid, It’s okay. I told you to make sure she was taken care of and you did.” The older man stood from his desk and squeezed Malcolm’s shoulder reassuringly. 

“I passed the case over to another team. My bosses aren’t too happy about it but with you and Dani gone and JT’s mind on Tally, today just wasn’t our day. ‘S okay. Happens to the best of us.”

“Another team?” Malcolm knew he looked and sounded frantic. “I could help, I could-”

“You’ve already helped, Bright.” Gil led him out of the office, closing the door behind him and locking up. “You did good.”


End file.
